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George Ibberson

Famous Sheffield Pocket Knife maker and owner of the Stradivarius and Doublesharp ## trademarks.

Ibberson's Origins

Ibberson is a famous and popular name in the Sheffield cutlery industry. From the mid-17th century to the beginning of the 19th century, there were just under a hundred Sheffield cutlers named Ibberson (or Ibbotson). A cutler named William Ibberson operated in the Stannington area to the north west of Sheffield as long ago as 1666, but it has been claimed that the origins of the George Ibberson company can be traced back to a Joseph Ibberson who made cutlery in 1700.

Little Mesters

This was a period when the concept of a firm as we know it now was unknown to the Sheffield cutlery industry. Instead, there existed a large number of self employed cutlers operating as individuals. These skilled, specialised craftsmen are often referred to as “Little Mesters” and would go on to feature heavily throughout the industry’s history.

Records show that in the mid-1700’s there was a Joseph Ibberson and son making cutlery on Sheffield’s Norfolk Street. In 1759 Joseph became Master Cutler. As part of his responsibilities as Master Cutler, Joseph was put in charge of a ‘steel making adventure’ which aimed to create cast crucible cheaper steel for the cutlery industry using new processes invented by Benjamin Huntsman. In addition to his business, Joseph also ran the tilt hammers at The Wicker in Sheffield.

Ibberson's Expansion

It is not clear when the company George Ibberson came into being, but with industrialisation and expanding global markets, what started out as a small-scale affair developed into a profitable cutlery empire. Ibberson became famous for producing the finest Pocket Knives featuring exotic handle materials like ivory, pearl and tortoiseshell. They also produced a wide range of cutlery, razors, scissors and sports knives.

Trademarks

In 1873, the company registered its world famous Stradivarius Violin trademark with The Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire. This mark, along with Ibberson’s other great trademark, Doublesharp ##, would go on to gain legendary status amongst knife enthusiasts the world over.

Ibberson in the 1900's

A second Ibberson, William (“Billy”), became Master Cutler in 1954. An influential businessman, he was involved in the formation of Sheffield’s Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet where a tilt hammer, just like the one his forefather, Joseph would have ran at The Wicker, can be seen in operation. When Billy was Master Cutler, The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh visited The Cutlers Hall. He gave them a pair of presentation Pocket Knives. As is customary, Billy received a penny from the Royal couple for each in return.In August 1913, it is widely reputed that the first stainless steel was developed in Sheffield by Harry Brearley, then a lead researcher at the city’s Brown Firth Laboratories. In early 1914 Ibberson made knife blades from stainless steel. Interestingly, whilst Ibberson confirmed the materials rust resisting qualities, they dismissed the material as being too hard to work and grind to be suitable for cutlery. A film titled “Made in Sheffield” made by Billy Ibberson while he was Master Cutler can be seen online at the Yorkshire Film Archive.